Thursday, February 23, 2017

It's Friday already and here I have yet another line from one of my Eleanor books to share. Okay, I am lying a bit - it is actually a paragraph. But, you'll have to excuse the stretching of the boundaries for First Line Friday because it is Eleanor and she is too cool to confine to one little line.

"Beneath the dome of the church at Fontevraud - in the twelfth century, one of the largest and most prestigious abbeys for women in France - one sees today four recumbent statues, the remains of old funerary monuments, Three of them are carved from soft limestone: that of Henry Plantagenet, count of Anjou and Maine through his father, duke of Normandy and king of England through his mother; that of his son and successor, Richard Coeur de Lion; and that of Isabella of Angouleme, second wife of John Lackland, Richard's brother, who became king in his turn in 1199. The fourth effigy, of painted wood, represents Eleanor, heiress to the duchy of Aquitaine, wife of Henry and mother of Richard and John; she died at Fontevraud, where she had finally taken the veil, on 31 March 1204."

And just for your viewing pleasure, here is a photo from the abbey and what the effigies look like today. Unfortunately the monuments were disturbed long ago, during the French Revolution. It pains me to no end in knowing that Eleanor's bones were lost or purposely destroyed, as well as those of Henry, Richard, and Isabella. This was a sacred burial place and their graves, and others, were needlessly desecrated. I am at least glad that the effigies survived. Without those, we wouldn't even have an idealized version of Eleanor. That's my girl, holding a book.

Thursday, February 16, 2017

Hello lovelies! I am still elbow-deep in research and I wouldn't have it any other way. One of the books I was most looking forward to finally arrived within the last week and it is one I am hoping will be most beneficial in really weeding out fact vs fiction in regards to Eleanor.

"Eleanor of Aquitaine is one of the most famous women in medieval history, yet also one of the most inaccessible."

Now, I am still inclined to lean toward the 'exceptional', though I know that train of thought is going to be challenged a lot by this book. I'm cool with that, so long as my girl still gets her due respect. I mean, seriously, she was hauling ass all over England in her twilight years to collect Richard's ransom, which she HAND-DELIVERED HERSELF. And when her beloved Richard was dying, who stopped at nothing to be there with him when he died? Oh, right, HIS MOMMA!

After you've left your First Line below, stop by the blogs of my fellow First-Liners to see what they have waiting for you this week!

Thursday, February 9, 2017

As you might have surmised by now given my posts here, on Twitter, and Facebook, I am in the process of writing a book about Eleanor of Aquitaine. I am supremely excited about this, because Eleanor is quite possibly my numero uno when it comes to favorite historical figures. I mean, come on, I named my daughter after her (Boudicca would've been a second choice, perhaps). I had a decent collection of non-fiction books regarding the original Eleanor started for my own little queen, but have now added multiple volumes as I read and research. So, as I will be immersed in the 12th century for the foreseeable future, I present my first of many First Lines about one of the most bad-ass women in history: Eleanor, Queen of England, Duchess of Aquitaine.

"When Eleanor of Aquitaine died in 1204 her long career had been the most colorful and the stormiest of any English queen consort before or since."

Ain't that the truth!

After dropping me a line, check out what my fellow First Liners have for you this week.